Midnight Tides/Prologue
''The First Days of the Sundering of Emurlahn ''The Edur Invasion, the Age of Scabandari Bloodeye ''The Time of the Elder Gods A Battlefield The prologue describes the aftermath of a battle between an army of K'Chain Che'Malle and an alliance of Tiste Edur and Tiste Andii. The hive cities of the K’Chain Che’malle have been reduced to rubble and four great Skykeeps are falling to earth and shattering, under the attack of the two Tiste armies. ] Scabandari Bloodeye, a Soletaken Eleint and ruler of the Tiste Edur, is surveying the battle scene and counting the dead. He sembles into his Tiste form and is joined by Silchas Ruin, an albino Soletaken Eleint and a Tiste Andii, who also sembles into Tiste form. Taller than the Edur and with red eyes, Silchas' body is slashed with sword cuts. Both of his swords are broken and missing. They talk and it is clear there are far more Edur than Andii left, with the Edur now surrounding the remnants of the Andii on the battlefield. The two armies have travelled to this world through a rent from elsewhere. Scabandari is exulting in the extent of their success but Silchas is bitter over the losses his people have suffered. As they talk it is revealed Scabandari is responsible for the sundering of Kurald Emurlahn. ] Silchas notes a Jaghut witnessing the battle from a nearby ridge and senses a ritual of Omtose Phellack beginning. As he speculates out loud to Scabandari on the nature of that ritual, he is betrayed. Scabandari stabs Silchas in the back, chains him in sorcery, and orders the surviving Andii slain. Then he veers back into his Soletaken from and carries Silchas off to imprisonment, speculating as he does so on any other potential opposition to him in this new realm. Amongst those mentioned are the three sons of Mother Dark: Anomander Rake, Andarist, and Silchas Ruin, the third and youngest. With Silchas removed and the other brothers missing or powerless, there is nothing to stop Scabandari from conquering this new world. The POV changes to that of the Jaghut, Gothos, who has watched the slaughter of the K'Chain Che'Malle. Weaving his ritual he is approached by an Elder God, Mael, who mentions that he is to have help in subduing Scabandari from another elder god from beyond the rent, Kilmandaros. Mael then asks Gothos to preserve the battle site in ice in return for a future debt, to which Gothos agrees. Despite Scabandari's belief that Anomander is no more, Gothos warns that Rake is also in this world and awakening to the danger. ''1159th Year of Burns Sleep ''Year of the White Veins in the Ebony ''Three years before the Letherii Seventh Closure The Warren of the Crippled God A huge man has been washed up on an island beach. He is the only survivor of a floating Meckros city destroyed by ice rising up from the depths. Three unusually large Bhoka'rala approach him and gesture for him to follow them, which he does, and they lead him towards a tent. At their gestures he enters the tent and finds himself facing a hooded and shrouded figure sitting in front of a brazier. The figure, who claims to be a fallen god, calls him his name, Withal the Swordmaker, and offers to provide him a forge, with food, water, and a place to live, and in addition the help of the three bhoka’ral (who are in fact Nachts) if he will make a sword for him. Withal attempts to turn down the offer, but the god informs the swordmaker that he is now his slave, and has no choice. But the god promises to release him once the task is done. de:Kinder des Schattens/Prologue 00